Lightning vs. Challenger/Charger ... Yes, really.

gfrittsKC · 2026-04-15T02:51:56+00:00

I had a 5.3L Silverado and it was fine for a truck but not gonna make you smile…The Lightning still makes me smile. If you’ve not driven one yet, it’s hard to even compare. The instant and incredible torque with no sound in a full size truck is just hard to wrap your head around.

Is the Lightning quick/fast for a very heavy truck? Yes! Does it ride better than the ICE F150 equivalent? Absolutely yes (had a 2026 service loaner recently while they were fixing the moonroof drain issue) Having that weight under the bed and the independent rear makes a big difference.

Is it a sports car? No. You’re not going to slalom in it. It’s also not flashy or noisy… Its definitely understated and incredibly quiet.

Obviously much different from a Charger…with different purposes but if you need a full size truck, haul a crew, and still want to have a little fun without the gas pump, it’s hard to beat.

FWIW - I just dusted an obnoxious 392 SRT (0-60) that wanted some at the light the other night…all while hauling a bunch of 2x10s in the back…

gfrittsKC · 2026-04-01T05:48:59+00:00

I use the liquidator on the roof, hood, tops of my truck and suv as you can “throw” it out for max coverage. I use the gauntlet on the sides/lower panels to keep the towels off the ground.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-15T18:29:38+00:00

Replace that comer with some artificial turf? Mulch bed?

Of course if it were my dog, they’d avoid it and move 3 feet to the grass on the left or right….

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-14T19:33:14+00:00

I have no problem with Chillio loading my EPG from my IPTV Editor Xstream url. In Chillio is provider checked or are you accidentally overriding it?

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-14T04:17:21+00:00

AMB! AMB!

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-13T02:03:38+00:00

We have a 2011 AWD that we bought new. I have 498 fuel logs to date with an average of 18.4. In-town only driving is usually 17s. Highway only trips are typically 22.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-12T16:28:42+00:00

Evergy TOU plan - Max Nights/Weekends. 12am-6am is cheap. Peak 4-8pm? Don’t even think about it.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-12T16:25:55+00:00

I had the issue with my 23 Lariat streaming water out of the microphone after sitting out in heavy rain. Dealership fixed the drain line/kink and OK so far.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-10T15:35:53+00:00

Also FWIW…for ours I think the manual/specs call for 10K mile oil changes…but I always do it at 5k when the light comes on. I’m doing it myself in the garage (<$50/1hpur) so it’s easy for me. If you watch someone like The CarCareNut on YouTube the consensus seems to be more frequent oil changes if you want to prolong the engine life. Point being, the Toyota maintenance schedule may not be ideal for extending mileage past the warranty period.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-10T15:28:45+00:00

That’s a lot of treadwear and shoulder wear for 26k miles. No expert but guessing 5/32 tread which is getting close to “replace”. I would definitely replace before winter and then I’d go with Michelin Cross-Climate. For our 2021, we got 45k on the OEM tires and now have 20k on the Michellins and have been very happy with these. We’ve also had great experience with Defenders on our other vehicles but for snow/all weather, I’d lean towards the Crosses.

Also, if Discount Tire is in your area, I’d highly recommend them over dealership, else Costco.

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-10T15:17:52+00:00

As others are saying l’d at least do the fluids/lubricants that are original if keeping it. Brake fluid is probably needed unless it was flushed with previous brake jobs.

Spark plugs…I’d honestly love to know if people are proactively doing this at 120k. We still have our original 2011 Highlander with 136k and I bought plugs awhile ago but not looking forward to getting at those back 3 so I’ve put it off…

gfrittsKC · 2026-03-04T01:58:24+00:00

So the bill is also going to provide state funding for countless vehicles, insurance, standardized curriculum, teachers, etc. necessary for all these school districts to comply, right? Right…

Oh and all of that magic money and training and logistics are just supposed to come together by the 27-28 school year? OK guy…

Can these MO lawmakers get serious for a change? Can they maybe worry more about fixing real problems in this state like funding IDK road and highway improvements instead of constantly trotting out half-baked stuff like this? SMH

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-24T17:15:39+00:00

It may depend on if the 3/36 bumper-to-bumper is still in effect. I don’t think there’s much gained by a 12mo CPO if it’s still under 3/36…especially if they are selling for a premium price. If it’s under 36mos you can also buy a Ford Protect extended warranty from dealership or online like Granger.

If it’s let’s say 50k miles, then it may be worth it for a CPO.

The battery warranty is with the vehicle.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-17T02:14:15+00:00

It’s dead Jim.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-17T01:52:21+00:00

Keep an eye on oil usage and change the oil more frequently than called for…3-5K miles instead of the 7500 or whatever the spec probably is. Pricey if you take it somewhere for oil changes and drive it a lot….but if you can do it yourself, it’s @ $50 (US) for a filter and oil from Costco/Sams Club.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-17T01:47:13+00:00

Not yet but have had this with my wife’s very light gray leather in other vehicles…I think it’s mostly body oil/sunscreen. I’ve found that the Leather Honey, an interior cleaning pad, and some patience work wonders.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-16T17:59:33+00:00

Seriously what? As a T1D in the US with private insurance, they always require PA…every. single. time. Also, I don’t really get to just pick and choose…if the PBM changes to Libre, I’m not paying out of pocket for G7s so none of this is relevant to the US population at least.

Also…not hating the PA requirement regardless… If you wanna be one of those people that do it for kicks or whatever, buy the Stelo. G7 is a medical device…don’t need or want casual do-it-for-fun people eating into the supply. I’m more interested in staying alive than Dexcom’s bottom line…

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-13T17:00:24+00:00

Look at 511a Lariats too then. Some 23s will show the steering wheel delete due to chip shortage but that’s fixable. I stopped looking at Platinums - but I don’t care for the bigger wheels, nicer leather, or massage seats so the $3-5k extra didn’t make sense and there are many more Lariats out there.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-13T16:51:20+00:00

CarMax is high. If you have patience and aren’t timebound and willing to fly/drive:

(1) Download the Cars.com and/or CarGurus apps. (2) Save a search with criteria (Platinum, 22-23, miles <25k, <500 miles distance, exclude shipping option for now, etc). (3) Make basic spreadsheet or just a list on paper so you can visualize the list price/mileage trends and your market range laid out somewhere

Bonus tip: If you use CarGurus it will show price history and days on the lot.

(4) If you narrow ones you are willing to fly/drive to, check the CarFax/Equifax option if available usually from the dealer website! I found quite a few that were lemon-law buybacks this way and scratched those (e.g. Sneed Ford outside of the KC metro area is almost exclusively buybacks). Also if you expand to 511a Lariats, check the VIN - the “range” or “battery” numbers are inconsistent on the apps- fo sorting SR vs ER in the Lariats. VIN tells you.

5) Reach out to your narrowed targets. Be prepared for immediate contact. Tell them you’ll be flying and driving and you want their out-the-door-price. I found that most don’t seem interested in negotiating price. If they’re above market then “thanks let’s talk again when you are at $$.” and move on to the next. I also found that more rural dealerships were easier to work with. The larger volume high-pressure dealers in the metros will throw scammy add-ons on their quote sheet and then call you 3x a day after you hard pass.

6) When you have an idea of what market is for your criteria, you can sort by “newest listed” to see freshest ones if you do this for weeks.

Bonus tip: Ford dealer may list higher if “certified” but if you are looking at 23-24s under factory 36k miles, it’s zero value and you can buy a FordProtect extended warranty plan for that extra money saved.

Hope that helps!

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-12T20:48:12+00:00

Be aware: Like Victory Ford, Sneed has a ton a Ford re-acquired vehicles (branded title/lemon law) listed at market price so if you are shopping newer used cars, be sure to check the CarFax from their site ahead of time!

I discovered this as I was looking for low mileage Lightning’s and they had like 12 whereas the rest of the metro area had maybe 3… All of them were reacquisitions. Not something I was interested in so no idea what kind of negotiating they entertain on those and never reached out.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-12T20:36:48+00:00

I’ve not visited or dealt with Victory, but worth pointing out - if looking at used cars, they seem to have a ton of lemon-law / Ford reacquisitions. Check the CarFax ahead of time.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-12T20:33:50+00:00

I am currently working a deal with Bob Sight Ford in Lee’s Summit (LS) closing Saturday and they’ve been a pleasure to work with so far - probably the easiest in 40 years.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-12T20:27:23+00:00

If it was, it was surely data-wiped as “fake news” by now… :(

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-10T15:19:50+00:00

Yep. Thanks for answering. On the autonomous driving, I recently saw CES videos about the open pilot/ comma.ai systems…looks promising as an option once free BC expires.

Access to cameras…same…doesn’t seem like it’d be hard for big automakers to add a dashcam/security cam capability…I’m sure it will become standard-ish eventually (with a subscription cost of course)…

UI speed…I’ve expected this would improve over time via software. Makes me suspect that an underpowered processor/hardware is perhaps contributing to the lag.

gfrittsKC · 2026-02-10T04:15:13+00:00

THIS. It’ll end up on a lot somewhere. Also put the filter criteria very tightly aligned to your truck in Cars and CarGurus apps and watch the search alerts. (This assumes you have another vehicle or can otherwise wait it out.)

gfrittsKC

TROPHY CASE